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A big throwdown in the non-profit world this weekend at an annual gathering of some of the most amazing executives and entrepreneurs in the world. At this year’s Summit Series Basecamp at Squaw Valley in Lake Tahoe, Architecture For Humanity’s Cameron Sinclair throws down the gauntlet challenging Pencils Of Promise Founder, Adam Braun to build 100 classrooms this year. And I caught the dual on video (see above). The two take different approaches to building schools in areas of extreme poverty. Architecture For Humanity’s schools are higher quality, disaster resistant, using trained professionals as well as local labor and therefore cost more to build, at about $25,000 per classroom. Pencils Of Promise constructs a less expensive basic classroom at $10,000, using local labor and offers educational programs for the schools. Each are going to build 100 classrooms this year. But the interesting part of this throwdown is which approach is best? The answer truly is that both are doing good. But it does come down to money. Is it better to pay more up front to build a school that will stand the test of time or is it more realistic in terms of the limited funds available to build what they can now?

“My whole goal in this challenge is that I think Adam’s company does good work, but I want them to do great work and I want them to start doing it in the U.S. as well as overseas,” explains Sinclair.

So, in light of this challenge, more than 200 schools will be built this year around the world, including one in Detroit, Michigan, which the two will collaborate on. They’re asking people to take sides and support one of the two organizations. What strikes me about this challenge is here are two rival organizations with two different approaches to solving the same problem, and they’re challenging each other in order to raise awareness about an issue they each feel strongly about fixing.

Sinclair says, “No matter who gets the most support, everyone wins.”

“We have a lot of respect for one another,” says Braun. “This will challenge the people who work with our organizations as well to continue to do the best we can for students.”